general dunford. >> chairman-- >> secretary, you. >> thank you for the opportunity to join secretary carter to appear before you today to talk about the counter isil campaign. senator carl just provided an update of our approach in before taking your questions i would like to share my perspective on where we are the military campaign and where we are going. my full isil is a transracial threat with affiliates located from south asia to west africa are top priority remains to disrupt attacks against the homeland, the american people, our allies and partners regardless of the source. we continue to assess the most dangerous threat remains isil in iraq in syria. i just returned from iraq last week and received an update from our leadership. i also had the opportunity to visit with troops and observe iraqi forces at their training sites. the situation is complex with no shortage of political and military challengers and i was encouraged by what i heard and saw the ground. last fall it would've been fair t

ladies and gentlemen, general dunford. [applause] general dunford: good morning. mr.er, distinguished guests, and to the gold star families who are here, it's an honor to be with you today on this hallowed ground. as we pause this morning to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom and security of this great nation, thousands of men and women continue to serve on active duty around the world -- many in harm's way. this morning while we remember and honor the fallen, i asked that you keep those serving in our thoughts and prayers as well. today's generations of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, and coast guardsmen is proudly following in the footsteps of american citizens that answered the call to duty. since george washington called together an army, over 40 million americans have served the colors to ensure the citizens of our nation can live their lives in freedom and peace. more recently others have answered the call to prevent -- confront terrorism. along the way, more than one million americans have given the last full measure. over 100,00

ladies and gentlemen, general dunford. [ applause ] >> good morning. mr.and most importantly to the gold star families who are here, it's an honor to be with you today on this hallowed ground. as we pause this morning and remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom and security of our great nation, thousands of men and women continue to serve on active duty around the world, many in harm's way. this morning while we remember and honor the fallen, i'd ask you to keep those still serving in your thoughts and prayers as well. today's generation of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, and coast guardsmen is proudly following in the footsteps of an unending line of american citizens who have answered the call to duty. since george washington cobbled together an army, over 40 million americans have served the colors to ensure the citizens of our nation could live their lives and raise their children in freedom and peace. some supported the birth of the revolution, more recently others have answered the call to confront terrorism. the story

good morning. >> good morning. >> secretary carter, general dunford, mr.once again as we pay our respects as americans to those who gave their lives for us all. here at arlington the deafening sounds of combat have given way to the silence of these sacred hills. the chaos and confusion of battle has yielded to perfect, precise rows of peace. the americans who rest here and their families, the best of us, those from whom we ask everything, ask of us today only one thing in return, that we remember them. if you look closely at the white markers that grace these hills, one thing you'll notice is that so many of the years, dates of birth and dates of death are so close together. they belong to young americans, those who never lived to be honored as veterans for their service. men who battled their own brothers in civil war, those who fought as a band of brothers an ocean away, men and women who redefined heroism for a new generation. they are generals buried beside privates they led. americans known as dad or mom, some only known to god. as mr. haleman, a mari

. >> talk general dunford there. >> general dunford to me with in., to spend time with him and his incredible team. and just to see his heart for the troops and his heart as a servicemember the highest ranking general in our nation it was it greatest honor of my life to be able to go with him and with someone of his valor. >> you are an amazing woman. we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. keeping your husband's memory alive, working in behalf of all of these families who really are true heroes in every sense of the word. we appreciate the effort you're making. continue to keep up the good fight. thank you so very much. we ask you to keep chris in mind this weekend along with the other serve members who died for our nation. thank all the brave men and women who are still fighting tirelessly for us today. we'll be right back. don't let dust and allergies get between you and life's beautiful moments. with flonase allergy relief, they wont. when we breathe in allergens, our bodies react by over producing six key inflammatory substances that cause o

secretary carter, general dunford, mister hellman, major general becker.o gave their lives for us all. here at arlington, the deafening sounds of combat have given way to the silence of these sacred hills. the chaos and confusion of battle has yielded to perfect , precise rows of peace. the americans who rest here and their families, the best of us and those from whom we asked everything. ask almost today only one thing in return . that we remember them. if you look closely at the white markers that drape these hills, one thing you will notice as that so many of the years, the dates of birth and dates of death are so close together. they belong to youngamericans . those who never lived to be honored as veterans for their service. men who battled their own brothers in civil war, those who fought as a band of brothers and ocean away. men and women who redefine heroism for a new generation. they are generals buried besides privates they lead. americans known as dad or mom. some only known to god. mister hellman, a marine who then watched over these grounds ha

let me join you in welcoming carter and mister dunford. thank you for your presence here today.this hearing is to update the committee on the status of operations against the islamic in iraq and isil is timely. it comes on the heels of business by the president, secretary carrie and both of you as part of the administration continuing review of our ongoing efforts as part of operation inherit result. we look forward to hearing your assessment of the situation on the ground, the progress that has been made to date and that task that can be accomplished in the months ahead. in recent days the department has announced two deployments, one each for iraq and syria. these deployments are intended to bolster efforts in those countries as the focus of coalition operations increasingly turns to isolating mosul and rock as well as ensuring that our partners have the enabling support needed to continue the momentum against isil. the deployment to iraq comes at a sensitive time for prime minister abadi continues to struggle to bring together the kurdi

. >> up next, general joe dunford, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff joins us to lay out a path of victory. you'll also meet a very brave man who's running an underground man who's running an underground family road trip! fun! check engine. not fun! but, you've got hum. that's like driving with this guy. all you do is press this, and in plain english, "coolant", you'll know what's wrong. if you do need a mechanic, just press this. "thank you for calling hum." and if you really need help, help will find you , automatically, 24/7. because you put this, in here. hum by verizon. the technology designed to make your car smarter, safer and more connected. put some smarts in your car. >>> in the summer of 2014, isis grabbed the world's attention when the black clad isis army suddenly charged out of its stronghold in rafah, syria. isis rapidly seized thousands of miles of territory including mosul, the second largest city in iraq. iraqi government forces fled before the onslaught and within weeks iran ran most of nieve na and anbar provinces. along the way isis captured tens of thousands o

i believe general dunford, chairman of the chiefs, has done as well as expected, considering the constraintsto get as of much out of this administration as possible. that's why this war is going on. that's why it will continue well into next year, maria, because of that policy. >> general, good to talk with you. thank you for your insights. we appreciate it it. general jack keane, we appreciate your time. >>> let's see what's coming up at the top of the hour, houry kurtz. >> we'll look at the wave of anti-trump pieces, like this "new york times" investigation today about many of the past women in his life. my special guest is megyn kelly. he'll talk about her trump truce, upcoming fox interview with the billionaire. and also the impact on her life and career of the attacks that trump has sent her way. and also the price of fame as she's gotten better known. >> that is going to be a must see. real quick, howie, do you think "the washington post" has 20 reporters on the clinton foundation right now? >> no. but i did talk to bob wilbur who says t"the washington post" wil be doing equal scrutiny

i think what chairman dunford, chairman of the joint chiefs, has been able to do is push out the boundary of those constraints as much as he possibly can. that's why there have been ten incremental increases in the number of troops. we are about probably at the limits of what the president is going to tolerate. we will not really bring this to completion until we have another president in 2017 who will probably ask one of the initial questions of the pentagon and of the national security team, what can we do about isis. give me some options to bring this thing to an end as quickly as possible. >> on a related topic, i wish we had more time, we only have about 30 seconds, i want to get your reaction to the news we heard last week when protesters stormed the green zone. i always thought that was an impenetrable -- what was your reaction when you first heard? >> it's quite porous, to be frank about it. listen, iraq from a political perspective is almost in collapse. it's going to impact on the military campai's not a solid government there, who is the army fighting for? not just its people.

. >> first person to say that wasn't obama, it was joe dunford the new chairman of joint chiefs of staffhere is the most important thing we can do and we're not doing it. we're not doing the second. what have we done to back off putin and chinese on expansion? nothing. sandra: colonel, when we see the urge for loin wolf attacks and we're sitting memorial day, the american people, they see that and hear that, they think wow, it is really scary time right now. as far as the strategy, you're critical of that, obviously you said with the current administration. what can the new president do immediately in office to get this going? >> if i were king i would go to jordan and egypt, get a sunni force to become peacekeepers in the three countries i described as kurd cities dan, shiastan and sunnistan. that the the saudi diswill help pay for it. we don't have to put 50,000 american troops on the ground. somebody said that is the strategy. that would be crazy. special operators out there right now, needs to be a few more, you mentioned fallujah, i spent april of and november of 2004 there over 104

national security officials within this administration, like secretary of defense carter and general dunford or those recently retired from service like retired general campbell have spoken of the need to better position the next president in theaters from afghanistan to asia to libya. so whomever that president is, regardless of party, we should take action now to help our next commander in chief in this year of transition. that's what this defense legislation before the senate will help us do. number one, it will support our allies and partners authorizing funds to combat isil, preserve gains in afghanistan, increase readiness at nato and assist friends like ukraine. number two, it will enhance military readiness, providing more of the equipment, training and resources our service members need. number three, it will help keep our country safe, getting us better prepared to confront emerging threats like cyber warfare, terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. critically, this bill will also honor our commitment to service members, their families and veterans, authoriz

members of our military serving overseas, particularly in the middle east, secretary carter and general dunford were stating the obvious. indeed, there has been recent news reports, in "the washington post," in "the military times" that describe up to 200 marines at a place called fire base bell in northern iraq firing artillery missions on a daily basis in support of iraqi troops in order to kill isis terrorists. our soldiers serving in the middle east as part of the joint special operations command conduct regular missions, counterterrorism missions to kill and capture terrorists in the middle east, and of course we see it on a daily basis. our brave pilots from all the different services have dropped approximately 40,000 bombs in iraq and syria, in close air support missions, again focused on destroying and killing isis members and their infrastructure and their logistics bases. since 2014, almost 1,200 bombs and closed air support missions have been conducted in afghanistan. just yesterday, we were informed of a successful strike, again coalition strike with fighter aircraft that killed thr

but i think what we need in this environment is we also and what general dunford was suggesting, we need the ability to have agility in our decision making and deployment of assets. very few of these challenges today are limited to one co-com. they're multiregional, multifunctional, multidomain. >> so we have to be sure that our organizational structure allows that agility. >> and the authorities, as well. >> general robinson, your comment. >> i agree with general scaparrotti 100%. it is a great time to look at it. the acts is 30 years old and the strategic landscape has changed. and the most important part out of all of this is the agility and able toyty o work with each other. >> my time is up, but i hope you will supply your thoughts in writing after the hearing and having people of your experience and wisdom would be very helpful to us. thank you. >> thank you, mr. chairman. the questions i was going to ask were pretty much asked by senator graham. and i would just ask you, general scaparrotti, in your memory, in your history and service, have you ever seen a time when this country i

secretary levels with the american people, tells the truth like secretary of defense and chairman dunfordsue we need to defeat isis. but we've got to do it by leveling with the american people. as you mentioned front page of the "washington post" yesterday, a marine fire base, artillery fire base doing missions every single day. that's the definition of combat. the white house needs to come clean on that. >> all right. just while you're here, we'd like to get your take on this. what do you think of donald trump as the presumptive nominee of your party? will you support him, and what are your thoughts especially on this issue pertaining to foreign policy? >> listen, mika, your previous segment when you talked about the economy, i think that's the critical issue. donald trump and even bernie sanders have tapped into frustrations. i think that frustration is hugely reflected by the fact that we can't grow the economy anymore. last quarter 0.5% gdp growth. this is enormous frustration for american people. i think you're seeing it reflected in the politics. i've stated that with regard to dona

so my question to both of you and i begin with general dunford is what are the implications for israel if iran continues to receive military equipment in russia and what would the united states have to do to counter it? >> senator, thanks and i think clearly there are implications for israel. i visited now couple times over the last few months and the israelis to view the developments in iran with great concern and that has a lot to do with our continued commitment to making sure israel maintains a qualitative military edge in the theater and so the implications are that we will continue to work loosely with your israelis to make sure they have the capabilities and capacities. as you know we talk about you and me to meeting not just the capability but also the capacity to deal with threats in the region so i think our commitment to what the israelis now call q and e2 is really the most appropriate response to the developments in iran but i share your concern and i know the israelis do as well. >> secretary carter, what can be done to stem the flow of arms in this way? obviously there a

there.ntial guard we will work with members of the international community on such a request and as general dunford indicated today, it is possible that nato could have a supportive role to provide security and combat isil. clearly, that is a goal shared by the prime minister there, by the government there, and that is something we stand ready to assist with. >> are we talking lead role here? mr. schultz: obviously combating -- theeat posed by isil president has asserted this is a priority for us. andre happy to entertain request from the libyan government, but i do not know if it has gotten to that level yet. question -- the president will be promoting to be be in asia. when you think about it, senators clinton, anders, even trump have opposed tpp. what about the likelihood of it getting anywhere given the fact that all three presidential candidates appear to be opposed? well, only one of them has a vote in congress right now and we continue to work with our partners in congress and leadership in the house and senate and we believe that this is something that should past because it is good for ame

if you vote for this amendment you are voting with general full -- general dunford. in 1981, the supreme court upheld the differential treatment where women were excluded from the draft because of purpose of the registration was to prepare a draft of combat troops. since women were excluded from combat, they could be asked loaded from registration. that is no longer the case. i would add that if you vote yes, to send american daughters to war, drafted, the cbo said it will reduce federal spending because you don't have to figure out who is a man or a woman. everyone at 18 gets drafted. i regretfully introduce this amendment. my daughters talk about serving and so does my son. but i don't want to see my daughters put in a place where they have to be drafted. to say that a big or will never happen and there is no need for a draft, that is not this debate. i think that is a shortsighted point of view. we will have a big war again. america will be in a conventional war again. history tells us that. we don't just prepare to fight in syria and iraq. that is what we are pre

can you elaborate a little bit on what the general conveyed to general dunford and others in brussels? >> my understanding as to what jenny colson conveyed at that meeting in brussels was a situational update on what's happening on the ground in afghanistan at this moment in time. he spoke not just to u.s. colleague bus also to other nato colleagues from other countries who may be involved in the mission in afghanistan. it was more an operational update, it was not a set of recommendations for the future. it was, this is what's happening today. >> are those recommendations till on track, i think the end of june was the timeline for that? >> my understanding is jenny colson is still set to meet that 90-day window if you will and fully tends to meet that, following the chain of command in terms of reporting his recommendations up through the hain of command. >> the egyptair flight, it's my understanding that the plane went down within a safe area, considered not a threat, or not considered to be many threats to civilian aviation but given growing concern about the mediterranean region a